President Obama pushes back on critics of Iran deal

This Nov. 23, 2103 file photo shows President Barack Obama speaking in the State Dining Room at the White House about the nuclear deal between six world powers and Iran that calls on Tehran to limit its nuclear activities in return for sanctions relief. For President Barack Obama, the deal to temporarily freeze Iran's nuclear program could pave the way for one of his biggest foreign policy victories and steady his flailing presidency. But the venture is rife with risk, including possibly miscalculating Iran’s intentions and straining already tense relationships with Congress and Middle Eastern allies.

Susan Walsh, File, Associated Press

Summary

Responding to his critics, President Barack Obama forcefully defended the weekend nuclear agreement with Iran, declaring that the United States "cannot close the door on diplomacy."

“When I first ran for president, I said it was time for a new era of American leadership in the world, one that turned the page on a decade of war and began a new era of engagement with the world. As president and as commander in chief, I've done what I've said.”

President Barack Obama

WASHINGTON — Responding to his critics, President Barack Obama forcefully defended the weekend nuclear agreement with Iran, declaring that the United States "cannot close the door on diplomacy."

The president's remarks came as criticism of the deal to temporarily freeze pieces of Iran's nuclear program mounted from Capitol Hill and some allies abroad, most notably Israel. Obama acknowledged that tough obstacles remain before the diplomacy with Iran can be deemed a success, but he insisted the potential rewards are too great to not test Tehran's willingness to strike a longer-term deal with the U.S. and other world powers.

"If Iran seizes this opportunity and chooses to join the global community, then we can begin to chip away at the mistrust that's existed for many, many years between our two nations," Obama said during an event in San Francisco.

For Obama, the shift to foreign policy could be a welcome change from the domestic problems that have plagued the White House in recent weeks, especially the troubled rollout of his signature health care law. The president used the opportunity to remind Americans that the current diplomacy with Iran is in part the result of the pledge he made at his inauguration to talk to the Islamic republic without preconditions.

"When I first ran for president, I said it was time for a new era of American leadership in the world, one that turned the page on a decade of war and began a new era of engagement with the world," he said. "As president and as commander in chief, I've done what I've said."

The weekend agreement between Iran and the so-called P5+1 countries — the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany — is to temporarily halt parts of Tehran's disputed nuclear program and allow for more intrusive international monitoring of its facilities. In exchange, Iran gets some modest sanctions relief and a promise from Obama that no new economic penalties will be levied during the terms of the six-month deal.

The groundwork for the accord was laid during four clandestine meetings between U.S. and Iranian officials throughout the summer and fall. An earlier meeting took place in March, before Iranians elected their new, more moderate-sounding President Hassan Rouhani. Details of the secret talks were confirmed to The Associated Press by three senior administration officials.

With a short-term pact in place, the U.S. and its partners will now set about trying to negotiate a broader agreement with Iran to permanently neutralize the nuclear program and assuage international concerns. The U.S. and its allies contend Iran is seeking a bomb, while Tehran insists it is pursuing a peaceful nuclear program for energy and medical purposes.

Monitoring will occur when and where the Iranians designate. Arriving at a deal
is mostly PR much as Bill Clinton's negotiations were with Kim Jong Il
while we were paying him to be nice and he was building nuclear weapons.

3:57 p.m. Nov. 25, 2013

Top comment

Mountanman

Hayden, ID

Nothing more than another public relations photo opt scam! Anything to divert
attention from the Obamacare catastrophe, the dismal economy and Obama's
plunging approval numbers!